At Last

by Reba Jean

Sailor Cosmos SerenityUsagiSailor Moon returns to Pluto's Time Gate. Her duty finally complete, all is finished, and she can rest in solitude. That's the end of the story ... or is it?

At Last

By Reba Jean, 8/10/02
E-mail: rjean@ghg.net, rebajean@Stories.Com
Homepage: http://www.angelfire.com/tx5/prairieskye
Rating: G

Disclaimer: Characters are based on Sailor Moon copyright 1992 by
Naoko Takeuchi/Kodansha, TOEI Animation, English language adaptation
Copyright 1995 by DIC Entertainment. This story is not intended for
monetary gain or tangible profit, but purely for entertainment of the
readers.

Note: This story has religious content, if this is objectionable hit the back button now. The symbolism herein is Catholic-Christian. If you imagine a different tale, then write it down if you choose to share it. I've not seen this particular rendering before, and have searched both Fan Fiction Net and A Sailor Moon Romance archives for Sailor Cosmos stories. I awoke early one morning from a dream, with the heart of this tale.

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Sailor Cosmos stepped through the time portal into Pluto's marble halls. As she approached Sailor Pluto, her form wavered and coalesced into a small, ageless woman. Long silver hair cascaded down her back in streamers from the two buns on either side of her head. The color flowed and mingled with the white, silver, and mother-of-pearl shimmers from the folds of her floor length gown.

The woman flopped down, surprisingly gracelessly, onto the steps next to where Pluto was seated. "It's finally done. The last task is finished. Puu, I am so –o-o-o tired!" exclaimed Serenity.

"Then you should rest. I've been waiting for you to return. There's something I want to show you, just a little ways beyond this portal," said Pluto, gesturing toward the short hallway appearing behind her.

"Aw, Puu. Can't it wait? I just want to sleep for the next thousand years or so. If I were still mortal, I would say that I was weary unto death," Serenity whined.

Pluto smiled, when you had lived as many millennia as Serenity, your vocabulary and usage were bound to improve over time. She had perfected the art of whining even before she became Sailor Moon, however. "Maybe you'd like to go sit and watch the sunset with me from one of my favorite spots instead," Pluto proposed.

"Ok, ok," grumbled Serenity wearily as Pluto helped her to her feet.

Exiting through the door at the end of another unfamiliar hallway, the Guardian of Time and self-styled Champion of Love and Justice stepped out on the graveled hillside path. "How many rooms does this palace have anyway? I've never been able to count them all. Every time I leave and return, it is different. I never even knew there was an outside to this place," commented Serenity as she looked around curiously at their surroundings.

The multilevel Greco-Roman style palace was built into the side of a large hill. Looking down, a river-carved ravine lay below them on one side. Across the plateau, the hill continued upwards into the clouds. Serenity revised her opinion, it was a mountain. Cutting a winding path through the green grasses and brightly colored wildflowers to the plateau beneath them, the trail led to a copse of evergreen trees beside a small lake. As the women passed through the stand of trees, the pathway widened into a meadow that sloped gently down towards the lake. At one side of the meadow, a small stream emerged from the spring beneath a tumbled rock outcrop. A welcoming stone bench guarded by the tendrils of an ancient willow tree waited beside the stream.

"This is a beautiful spot," commented Serenity. They relaxed in silence as the sun dropped in the western sky. The azure sky was dotted with scuttling cloud puffs and trailing wisps. As the sky darkened toward violet, the pinks, purples, and golds gilded the distant mountaintops and set ablaze the reflecting snowfields. All the glory of the sky was mirrored in the still lake below. Radiant dusk faded to black velvet night, strewn with bright diamond point stars.

Pluto regarded the teardrops trailing down Serenity's face, crystalline reflections of the starlight above. "What's wrong? Why have you grown so sad?"

"Endymion and I used to love to watch the sunset by the lake together, when we were young in Tokyo, and later after we took the throne in Crystal Tokyo. He said he would never leave me for long, that he would always come back to me, as surely as the sunrise would follow the sunset. Sometimes if we were still out late we would watch the sunrise, and he would remind me of his promise.

And yet he did leave me and has never returned. The senshi, the children, my friends all left. I'm the only one who still lives on and on and on. I thought they would be reborn; but no one, in all these long years, has returned. Why, Puu, why?" cried Serenity.

Pluto reflected, "But Endymion is with you still; they all are. As long as you can remember, they are there. Endymion loves you still and waits for you. He would be here with you if he could, but it is … not permitted."

Serenity shook her head sadly, "The link is gone, severed long ago, as he returned to the earth as dust. I was with him when he died, Puu. I saw the golden bowl broken, the silver cord loosed and his spirit float away as smoke. I could not hear him any more after that; I cannot hear him now." A few more tears dropped to the dust at her feet. "I watched them all fade and fail. One by one they all departed, until only I was left. I was the one who never grew old, even my daughter grew old as queen after I came to you. I watched my grandchildren's lives and their descendants until our memories were but a myth."

Serenity looked over at Pluto, "Without you, I would have gone mad. How have you remained here apart through the long eternity, watching alone? How could you bear it?"

Pluto turned and waved her hand in denial, "But I have never been alone, not as mortals perceive themselves to be. The Presence is always with me, as with all, though they may not be aware. The others of my kind are with me constantly as well. We are forever joined, whether in the distance or nearby. I see them when we journey to meet."

"Other Sailor Senshi or Guardians of Time?" Serenity asked curiously.

"Not exactly," Sailor Pluto smiled mysteriously. "Have you rested enough yet to climb the hill a bit? I have a surprise up ahead for you."

"All right, all right. I'll come with you and see this thing since you insist," Serenity agreed tiredly.

Pluto and Serenity began the trek upward toward the cloud-veiled summit. The trail steepened and narrowed and Serenity's breathing grew labored with the effort of the climb. "How far did you say we had to go?" she panted.

"Not much further, we're almost at the top. We can stop and rest then," answered Pluto as she led the way up the narrow, winding path. The visibility worsened as the mist and clouds thickened. Even with the light that Pluto had suspended head-high to light their path, they could see only a couple of feet ahead.

Serenity gasped as her foot slipped on the treacherous rocks and she fell toward the slope below. Her wordless gratitude flared; Puu caught her desperately flailing hand in a strong grasp. She then sprang lightly forward, a renewed surge of energy flowing into her. Serenity scrambled over the rockfalls after Pluto and the rapidly receding light.

Serenity noticed a golden glow in the distance. As they approached, the clouds and mist thinned somewhat. A great and high opaque crystalline wall loomed overhead. Near the corner was a large gate or door of a lustrous, milky hue; it resembled nothing so much as a cross-section of a gigantic pearl. The foundations of the wall were adorned with all kinds of precious stones. A fierce-countenanced, armored, winged being stood guard on the rampart overhead. She could see another door barely visible in the distance.

Emerging from a swirl of mist, a white robed man of medium build approached them from the opposite direction on the path along the wall. Though his dark hair and beard were shot through with grey, he appeared to be in the prime of life. A set of keys dangled from the cord girding his robe. His eyes twinkled with amusement and he laughed as he greeted them, "Puu, you're late! The party is about to start."

Pluto regarded him sternly and answered with a touch of frost in her voice, "Pete, it may be late, but I AM ALWAYS ON TIME!"

Serenity giggled at the by-play between the two. She knew how irritated Pluto became if anyone so much as hinted she could ever be late to something. Hearing a rustling sound, she turned and gaped at Pluto in astonishment. The Guardian of Time had transformed; a bright glow surrounded her; a simple white tunic and a divided skirt replaced her Sailor fuku. Most astonishing of all, she gracefully unfolded and shook out a large pair of white wings attached to her shoulders.

"It's so nice to get out of that fuku and into something comfortable again," Pluto commented as she used the shortened time staff to scratch between her shoulder blades where her wings attached.

Serenity's brow furrowed in confusion as she looked back and forth between the two people grinning at her like a pair of idiots. Questioning her sanity, she asked, "Since when did Sailor Pluto become an angel? And 'Pete'? St. Peter at the gates of heaven? … But I'm not dead! No way! This must be a dream." She regarded them in stubborn challenge, her arms crossed, and small foot tapping in irritation.

Pluto shrugged, "Technically, you are dead. Do you remember when you asked me how much farther we had to go? When the path was the steepest?"

"Yeah, so?" questioned Serenity.

"All of a sudden, you weren't tired any more? It didn't hurt to breathe? Your feet and legs stopped hurting?" asked Pluto.

"Yeah, I guess. I dunno, I wasn't paying much attention. I was just trying to keep you and the light in view in the fog," answered Serenity. "I still don't see why that should make me think I'm dead," she continued disbelievingly.

"Pete" raised an eyebrow. "You sure drew a lot of stubborn charges, Puu. This one was well matched with that husband of hers; he didn't believe us either and I ended up having to shove him inside through the door."

"Mamo-chan?" gasped Serenity.

"The same. First he wouldn't believe he was dead and said something about being immortal. Then he was convinced we brought him to the wrong place and kept arguing with me. And then when he finally believed us; he kept saying he needed to wait out here for you," St. Peter answered.

"He did remember his promise. Did you bring him here, Puu?" asked Serenity.

Pluto nodded, "And all the others too."

"I still don't believe that I'm dead; I feel fine," protested Serenity weakly.

St. Peter asked gently, "You were crying earlier, do you still feel like weeping? Are you still feeling so alone and full of sorrow? Do you still miss Endymion?"

Serenity looked thoughtful, smiled, and gave a joyful laugh. "It's all gone, all the pain, all the sadness, all the fear. I feel so alive and full of joy. The Power of the Presence is with me as never before." A look of wonder crossed her face, "I can even hear him again. Mamo-chan is right over there," she added, pointing across the wall.

"Well, don't just stand there, Pete. Open the door. This girl shouldn't be late to her own welcoming party," Pluto added as she shepherded them toward the gate.

The gates swung wide and Serenity entered. She looked around in amazed wonder, such a huge cloud of witnesses to her arrival. Her astonishment rooted her to the spot. It was far more than she could have ever imagined. And just beyond the joyous host, was the blazing radiance of the glorious Presence welcoming her. Her! "Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into your reward…"

Standing back near the gate, Pluto and St. Peter watched Serenity approach the crowd awaiting her arrival. Joyous recognition shone on her face as a tall, dark haired man broke away from the throng and approached her. "Mamo-chan!" she exclaimed as she ran toward him.

"Odango atama, you're late!" Endymion chided as he swept Serenity up into his arms and swung her around. "Usako, you're home at last!"

~~~Finis~~~

Quotes and sources:

Though I am certainly not a biblical scholar, the following verses were some of those used in this story:

"Remember your Creator before the silver cord is loosed, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher shattered at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the well. Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it." Ecclesiastes 12:6, 7

"I am with you always, even unto the end of the age." Matthew 28:20

"to a great and high mountain, and showed me the great city, the holy Jerusalem, …she had a great and high wall with twelve gates, and twelve angels at the gates, …its wall was of jasper; and the city was pure gold, like clear glass. The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all kinds of precious stones … The twelve gates were twelve pearls … And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass. … The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light." Revelation 21:10-22

"And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away." Revelation 21:4